Dark Chocolate Overnight Oatmeal Bowl

Before we get into these delicious creaminess of this ‘Rainforest Dark Chocolate Overnight Oatmeal Bowl’, let’s talk about how one kind of love taught me the right kind of ‘self care’ or ‘self love’ in recovery. Do you remember when I wrote this blog post titled, ‘More than Self Love?’

I’ve been thinking about it a lot, and I’ve been learning more about what love means, why love is so important and vital to finding a reason for living. This is just a small bit of what recovery taught me.

Learning to take care of your body, soul, mind and spirit in recovery is one of the most essential, yet hardest parts of recovery. My desire and prayer is that I would be able to love God and love my neighbor, while still caring for my body, soul, mind and spirit in a way that would glorify God and give praise to Him. And that’s hard.

You see. I was nervous about recovery being selfish. I know that people say that you can be selfish, but Jesus Christ died for my sins, the so that I could lay down my life for others and abandon sin and be freed from the lies of the devil. Jesus calls me to lay down my life in service.

But that doesn’t mean:

Destroying the work of God (as in beating your body, starving it, or destroy God’s work for the sake of my own desires to have a perfect body or ‘perfect diet.’)

What does it mean?

I realized that it all started in one place.

It started with experiencing, not just in my head, a taste of the reality of the love of God for a sinner like me.

Last night, I was thinking about this, and it brought me to tears. We were listening to a sermon on Romans 8:33 that says, ‘He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things?’

I’ve grown up listening to the Scripture and being taught from the Scripture and being soaked in the water of the Word, the grace of God, but it hasn’t always taken root in my heart.

Yet, the ROCKIEST roads of recovery was the valley of the shadow of death and despair in recovery that woke me up to my desperate . It need for God, my desperate need to know His love, to be saved from my sins, from my enmity with Him, and to be reconciled to Him.

I’m thankful for an eating disorder. Why am I thankful? I would have never wished for a trial, but it was just like David says in Psalm 119:67, ‘Before I was afflicted I went astray: but now have I kept thy word.’ I was way off course before I struggled with an eating disorder.

I was: ProudSelf ConfidentReally Selfish and I didn’t even know it. Unkind Not careful with my words.

And the scariest thing was that I didn’t even acknowledge it. I was often too busy, fluffing up my own self righteous frills like the Pharisee when he came into the temple with the publican. I would say in my head, ‘Thank God I am not as other men,’ when I really was as other men. I was vain in my imaginations, cold in my relationship towards God.

And then this year recovery took one of the largest steps possible.

It wasn’t me. I didn’t do anything. Last year I was despairing that I would ever stop gaining weight, that I would ever stop focusing on calories or be able to stay off the scale.

That’s when everything seemed to change. I can’t really explain it. I just know that it was the work of God, because what are the fruits of the Spirit?

Love Joy Peace Patience … (More in Galatians 5)

It was the first time in about 8 years that I had actually been able to look at the mirror and thank God for making the way I am.

It was the first time in about 8 years that I was able to find joy in serving others instead of serving my desires for the right amount of exercise, right amount of calories, or … for people to approve me.

It was the first time I experienced just a taste of the incredible peace of being reconciled, not just to my body, but to God.

It was the first time that I could actually be patient with my body as it healed, knowing that God’s timing is perfect, and that my only responsibility as God’s child was and is to wait upon Him.

The love of God is what taught me the right way to care for my body as the temple of the Holy Spirit, to gird up my mind to fight against the lies that ED fires at you, and to truly wonder at the amazing gift of the human soul, created in God’s image.

The greatest manifestation of God’s love was on the cross. It was Jesus Christ, coming, obediently, willingly giving His life for people who hated Him and cursed Him.

I was one of those people. Yet God saved me by His mercy, by the sacrifice of His Son, who bore all the sins that would have put me in hell, on the cross. He loved His life not unto death, and He had the victory over death.

It was God’s inscrutable mercy that I didn’t deserve that saved me, and only God’s love and mercy will bring me home.

Disclaimer:I did receive peanut butter from Nut Butter Nation for these recipes. However I only support and share brands that I love, trust, and would eat regularly myself.

Now what better way to end this post with a recipe, a recipe that really embodies the richness and the freedom of recovery. This isn’t just any recipe. It’s a recipe that I kind of ‘formulated’ to make it ‘higher calorie.’

This bowl is full of creaminess, fat (one of my favorite nutrients), some protein, and carbs for a satisfying breakfast.

(Take note: You are not talking to a health professional here, so take everything I label as ‘high calorie’ for me with a grain of salt.)

This bowl includes my VERY FAVORITE chocolate peanut butter. If you want to know more of my thoughts on this specific one you can read this post here!

The Rainforest Dark Chocolate flavor is basically the best chocolate flavored peanut butter I’ve ever eaten, so my thinking is that it would make a really good bowl of ‘overnight oatmeal’ cause overnight oats are a blogger ‘thang.’

Mix all ingredients in a jar. Put it in the refrigerator overnight. Cut up strawberries or another favorite fruit and drizzle with more chocolate peanut butter.

By Emily Swanson

Beauty In Christ - The Book http://beautyinchristthebook.com/

That is the beauty of the overnight oatmeal.

You prepare it the night before, and voila, it is there in the morning. I was thankful this morning that it was already prepared before heading off for a short 4k-5k race. Going into races well fueled is always one of my priorities, and these were super easy on my stomach which was a big PLUS! 🙂

Ok, so who wants some more overnight oatmeal ideas? I collected a few other recipes for you to use just in case this one doesn’t quite suit your fancy for breakfast.

Comments

Yum what a great recipe! Amanda has some delicious recipes too. I love how most of them contain bananas, an ingredient I am never short of 😉
Emily, your love for God burns on these pages. I think you should love your body, but love it because it’s YOUR body first, then thank God for it. I really think recovering for you first is important. It’s honestly a better mindset. Almost how no one should recover for their parents or their spouse, they should recover for themselves. You should recover for you, not because you feel you owe God something (we do, I get that, but it’s hard to conceptualize recovery in this way)

I clearly remember the fear of the neverending weight gain. I thought I was tied to this life of feelinguecomfortable in seeing my body grow. However, low and behold, once I released the reigns and let my body take control, it knew when it was healthy. it knew when I needed to back off. That trust rekindled was the best thing ever. So glad you have this restored as well girl! <3

What an honest and God-glorifying post! Hosea 6:1 has gotten me though so many valleys. “Come, let us return to the Lord; for he has torn us, that he may heal us; he has struck us down, and he will bind us up.” God is sovereign over all…including my pain and trials. He even ordains them to deepen my relationship with him. And YES YES YES to chocolate + peanut butter!

Amen sister. The amazing thing is that we can always return to the Lord, and He will bind up our broken hearts and make us new. I’m so learning to embrace the trials and thank God for the way He refines His children.

Beautiful post, Emily. I can absolutely relate to this- I feel that recovery has put me on the right path.. The trials we go through make us so much stronger and bring us closer to God. Thank you for sharing- I can’t wait to try this oatmeal!

I am so grateful for the chllenges I have been through in my life. Even though at the time they seem awful and unfair,, i realise that not only do they make me stronger – they also make me more empathetic and able to love others better. If I never had those challenges, I wouldn”t be the person I am today and I wouldn’t know the depth and wonder of God’s love for me!

Really, the desire to have a relationship with God and to serve others is what drew me to recover from my ED. It definitely felt selfish during recovery to sit around doing nothing and just eat for about a month straight–but I just had to keep reminding myself that it was all for purpose in the end!

These sound so good Em!! I am so excited to try that nut butter. Looks delish! i tried the honey vanilla one and loved it. I need to make some overnight oats this week! SO happy to be back and reading your blog love <3

So much love for this. I definitely struggled with the whole “selfishness” aspect of recovery. It was weird to think, “I SHOULD eat all this food,” when I know that so many people are starving and without food. But I knew that my reason for eating a lot was for my own health, so that I could glorify God as He wills me to. Thank you for sharing your thoughts about this, Emily!
I like overnight oats a little more than hot oats, but it depends on my mood too. Both are great though!

Oh Emily, your posts always bring me so much joy. I am always so encouraged by your passionate love for our Savior and your genuine journey to recovery. When I’m going through a rough time, I try to remind myself that each day is fresh start, and even if the present is painful, joy comes in the morning.

This recipe looks great by the way! I love chocolate flavored anything.

The Life of the Writer

I live in the beautiful state of Colorado where 14ers are to give you all the sore legs you need, amazing skiing, plenty of other runners, glorious sunsets, majestic elk herds, and peaceful country roads with clear air.

Go Back in Time!

Go Back in Time!

I am a very ordinary girl. I’m 21, but if you met me, you wouldn’t believe me. I am passionate about girls finding true beauty in Christ. I love peanut butter, icecream, and salad. My hobbies are cooking, baking, sharing laughs and tears with others, and sharing the fullness of joy that Christ has put in me. I love reading other blogs, and I hope that this will be a place where you can find encouragement, recipes, smiles, and joy. Click here to read more about me...